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My Favorite SCUBA Diving Gear

It's just my opinion, but here's what I use and why I like it.

Scuba Regulator

Atomic Aquatics T1 Titanium Regulator

Basically the same as the newest Atomic T2x, I have been diving with the Atomic T1 since it came out, I believe in 2001. What drew me to it wasn't the superb breathability, but the extreme resistance to corrosion. Diving in remote locations, it is often difficult to get to enough fresh water to properly rinse your gear. Choosing between drinking water and soaking a regulator, drinking water usually wins, at least for me.

It's also leight weight, which is great, but my other regulator, which I've dived with for many, many years, a Poseidon Cyklon, is pretty light too. At first, I was honestly dissappointed when I first made a dive with the Atomic. I thought for $1,600 or more, that the difference should be more dramatic. I don't really know what I was thinking. You inhale; you get air. Perfect. But I already had that.

Where the Atomic really shines is in deeper water and under a load. It also has a very high coefficient of coolness. The bottom line is that it is the best regulator money can buy and I never even think about diving with anything else.

Poseidon Cyklon

I still use this regulator in the pool when teaching diving, and sometimes I travel with it because I don't keep a drysuit hose attached to it anymore. I've had mine for easily 20 years, and I think, given the choice, I'd still keep this one over the Atomic. It's just nostalgia though. I've taken this regulator all over the world and have so many memories with it, I just can't imagine it not being there. Nonetheless, it is a workhorse. It's not sexy, but it's tough, and has a certain cool factor of it's own.

Exposure Protection

DUI CF200 Drysuit

The DUI CF200 is kind of like the Atomic regulator. Worldwide, it is recognized as an elite exposure suit. I bought it to replace a neoprene drysuit from Monterey Bay Custom Wetsuits (now Otter Bay Wetsuits) that I wore out over a period of about a dozen years, and somewhere around 1,500 dives.

At the time, all I cared about was toughness. I wanted a suit that was durable and that's it. No doubt, it is that. It fits great too. In retrospect, I really think I would like to have a lighter suit that dries faster like the TLS350. The CF200, being crushed neoprene, holds a lot of water so it stays heavy and doesn't really dry with a towel like other suits. As for quality, you can't buy a better drysuit, so I'd recommend it completely.

Buoyancy Compensating Device (BCD)

OMS Stainless Steel Backplate w/45lb Lift Wing

For my own diving (i.e. when I'm not teaching), I dive with an OMS Backplate/Wing buoyancy system. Until about 1994, I used only a backpack and tank, with no BC at all. I liked it because of the snug fit and complete lack of bulky stuff on my chest. Eventually though, BCD's evolved and today I don't dive without one. (except with a group of vintage nerds once in a while, but that's a different story).

Going to a backplate/wing BC brings back everything I loved about diving with just a backpack, but with advanced buoyancy control, weight integration, dramatically improved versatility and the ability to configure my rig to match any type of diving. It's great.

The only thing I don't use it for is teaching, but that's only because students are just getting familiar with a conventional BCD and I think it's best that they see me in somethign they can relate to and use themselves.

Seaquest Black Diamond

I have been using the original version of the SeaQuest Black Diamond BCD for quite a few years. It's a rear inflation BC, which I like because it fits a little snugger than most jacket style BCs. It's as rugged as anything out there. My only complaint is that the integrated weight system doesn't have the same secure feel as the new version. I may replace it soon. As an instructor, they like it when we use all the latest equipment. I haven't decided yet, but I'll probably just get another Black Diamond.

Seaquest Predator

I don't know when they stopped making the Seaquest Predator, but it's a great BCD. My guess is that it's gone because it isn't weight-integrated. If you find a deal on a used one, expect it to be durable and have a snug fit. I love that. It doesn't move around or ride up when inflated like some BC's do. The only thing I don't like is that the D-rings at the bottom rusted. Lame. I use it more than my other BC's because it's my pool BC.

Dive Computer

SubGear XP-10

This is a great computer. I have the console that also has the pressure gauge and compass. I bought it when I started diving with Nitrox. I like most any computer that's easy to read underwater, but this really is a lot more refined than my Datamax. Anyway, it's great.

Oceanic Datamax Sport Dive Computer

Like just about all the scuba gear on the market today, computers a pretty much all good, regardless of brand. I am about to replace mine though. I like it, but it is pretty old, and I want something I can downlaod directly to my desktop computer. Also, while the Datamax is altitude adjustable, it isn't nitrox compatible, so I am really being forced to change.

The main point with computers is this: get one. They're cheap these days. They'll extend your bottom time and eliminate fiddling around with the Recreational Dive Planner (RDP) on shore or on the boat. I haven't decided what my next one will be, but I'll post info about it here once I decide.

Scuba Tanks

Sherwood Genesis High Pressure Steel Scuba Tanks

I was surprised to learn that high pressure tanks have been largely displaced by low pressure steel tanks, but when you dig a little deeper, it makes sense. Basically, the difference is the valve. High pressure scuba tanks are defined by their working pressure of 3500psi, and also by their use of a 300 bar DIN valve.

Low pressure steel tanks have a working pressure under 3442psi, and can be fitted with either a 200bar DIN valve or a standard scuba yoke. The difference in pressure is more or less meaningless, and valves exists that can be converted between DIN and a standard yoke in the field. My regulators are both fitted with 300 bar DIN. As a result, they work with all three scuba tank/valve combinations commonly in use today.

So, the real issue comes down to modern steel tanks vs. aluminum. I much prefer steel. The reason is that steel scuba tanks are negatively buoyant even when empty. They are also heavier underwater, which means less lead around your waist than you'd use diving with aluminum. As an added bonus, modern steel scuba tanks are typically much more compact than their aluminim couterparts.

I have three Genesis steel scuba tanks. They hold 65 cubic feet, 80 cubic feet, and 100 cubic feet of air when full (3500psi). The 65 stands only 20 inches to the top of the valve. The 80 is closer in size to an aluminum 50. And, the 100 is about the same size as an aluminum 80. All are great underwater.

Mask, Fins, Snorkel

Truthfully, just about everything they sell in your local dive shop will be great quality gear. Personally, I have been diving with a Mares mask for ages. It fits well, and feels good. Mine is black silicone rather than clear. I like that because I don't get reflections on the inside of the glass. Some divers feel that black causes a sense of tunnel vision and prefer clear. All that matters is that you like it, and the water stays on the outside. For fins, I use Apollo. I don't remember the model, but they're not split fins. Dive boat operators laughingly refer to them as "yum yumm yellow." Hmm... (They're the fins I'm wearing in the picture on this page.) You see a lot of divers using the same fins. Again, get what you like. Try them in the pool if you can. Same with the snorkel. If you like it, great. Mine is an old Dacor, with a drain valve. They're pretty much all good.